Typically, turkeys, and other fowl, are cooked with the bones left inside. In part, this is because it can be difficult to remove the bones from the turkey, adding greatly to the time necessary to prepare the meal. De-boning the turkey prior to cooking by known methods may also be undesirable because it involves cutting the turkey into multiple pieces, making for a less visually appealing presentation.
However, there are problems with cooking a turkey that still has the bones in it. The turkey is quite large, and requires both a large cooking dish and a great deal of oven space. Furthermore, the time needed to cook the turkey is much greaterxe2x80x94in some cases, as much as 3 hours greater. And, of course, even after the turkey is cooked, the bones must still be removed, either by carving during serving, or during consumption by the individuals actually consuming the turkey.
Therefore, what is needed is a method for de-boning a turkey prior to cooking such that it can be cooked more rapidly and with less oven space, which leaves the turkey in substantially one piece to provide a good visual presentation, and eliminates the need for carving around the bones during serving or consumption.
A first embodiment method of de-boning a fowl according to the present invention comprises: Making an incision along a leg bone, exposing a leg joint between the leg bone and the rest of the turkey, and severing the leg joint, such that the leg bone is removed while leaving substantially all flesh of the leg attached to the rest of the fowl; removing two segments of a wing, such that a third segment of the wing is left attached to the rest of the turkey, making an incision along a wing bone of the third segment of the wing; exposing a wing joint between the wing bone of the third segment and the rest of the turkey, and severing the wing joint, such that the wing bone is removed while leaving the flesh of the wing attached to the rest of the fowl; making an incision along the back of the fowl, and separating the flesh of the back from the backbone and ribcage; severing a joint between the thighbone and the rest of the fowl; making an incision along a shoulderbone, such that flesh surrounding the shoulderbone can be pulled free while remaining attached to the rest of the fowl; removing a ribcage from the rest of the fowl; separating flesh from a breastbone and removing the breastbone; removing a wishbone; making an incision along a thighbone, exposing a thigh joint connecting the thighbone and the rest of the fowl, severing the thigh joint, such that the thighbone can be removed while leaving substantially all flesh of the thigh attached to the rest of the fowl.